The following description is provided to assist the understanding of the reader. None of the information provided or references cited is admitted to be prior art.
Harmful particles and pollutants are commonly found in the air not only in industrial and laboratory settings, but also in everyday living spaces of the public. Accordingly, many countries, municipalities, and governments mandate specific monitoring and air quality reporting to increase awareness and safety for the public. In industrial settings, monitoring and treatment of air pollution may be required for the safety of workers involved in activities that produce hazardous materials or that involve such hazardous materials. Monitoring of air pollutants also has substantial personal application; for example, in individual homes for the detection of carbon monoxide and by individuals in the event of a chemical or biological terrorist attack.
Traditional detection systems for such harmful particles and pollutants have generally been designed for use in industrial and laboratory settings, and, as such, have traditionally been very expensive and large in size. More affordable air monitoring devices having small sizes and increased efficiencies are much more advantageous to more expensive devices having larger sizes and greater inefficiencies. Compact device sizes allow for the use of monitoring devices in applications that will not allow for large device sizes. For example, placement of monitoring devices in small spaces and inclusion of monitoring devices on personal safety equipment having limited space. Efficient monitoring devices allow for faster analysis of air pollutants and lead to faster notification of pollutant levels. However, small monitoring devices have traditionally been inferior to conventional large monitoring equipment in terms of accuracy and sensitivity. In addition, traditional monitoring equipment is often quite expensive rendering widespread use by individuals impractical.